


One More Night

by MirrorMystic



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-26
Updated: 2018-01-26
Packaged: 2019-03-09 18:33:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13487292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MirrorMystic/pseuds/MirrorMystic
Summary: Love heals. But it also hurts. And if Futaba loses him now, she just might lose him forever.





	One More Night

**Author's Note:**

  * For [yormgen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yormgen/gifts).



> These two love each other so much, calling it 'one-sided' just doesn't feel right at all. It just... isn't the side that Futaba would like.
> 
> I hope you all enjoy the read.

~*~  
  
Futaba can’t sleep.  
  
She wants to. She wants to bury her head in her favorite bunny pillow, wrap herself in a blanket cocoon, and sleep until this is all over. Maybe she can just stay here in her room, smothered in blankets and darkness. She'll just sleep all the way through April, and they can wake her up when he’s back again.  
  
If she did, maybe she wouldn’t have to say goodbye.  
  
Futaba rolls over onto her back and blows out a sigh, staring up at her ceiling. Glow-in-the-dark star stickers glimmer above her, the only stars anyone can see with Tokyo this bright. Music thumps into her throat. She’s still wearing her headphones. She’s still playing music. She can’t muster the energy to take them off, or turn it off. She’s tired, and her limbs are heavy. So why can’t she fall asleep?  
  
Futaba drapes a hand over her eyes. Her breath catches in her throat, and she realizes, with a flicker of distaste, that she’s about to cry. She huffs, stubbornly fighting it down.  
  
“Go away, Dad!” She snaps at the knock at her door.  
  
The door opens anyway, and Futaba groans in frustration. But then there’s a hand in her hair, and Futaba goes very, very still.  
  
“Hey, bug,” Akira says softly, smoothing her hair against her scalp.  
  
Futaba shudders. She sits up, and leans into him, letting his arm settle around her shoulders, his fingers in her hair.  
  
“...Personal space,” she mumbles into his shoulder.  
  
Akira smirks, but it doesn’t last long. There’s not enough light in Futaba’s room to glint off his glasses and hide his face. She can see his eyes- distant. Lost.  
  
“I finished packing,” he says.  
  
Futaba looks up at him. “Already?”  
  
“I mean, I already keep most of my clothes in a big ol’ shipping crate anyway.”  
  
“I should ask Dad if he can shell out some cash for a proper dresser,” Futaba mutters. “And a real bed, one that’s not just a mattress on cinder blocks. And a real computer. I can’t hang out with somebody who uses a piece of crap laptop like yours. It’s embarrassing.”  
  
“Taba, you don’t have to buy me a computer,” Akira chuckles.  
  
“Please,” Futaba scoffs. “I’ll _make_ you a computer. I can build you a rig better than anything you’ll ever find on a shelf. I’ll get Ryuji to make you a computer desk. We can stick it in the corner, and replace your Mission Impossible desk where you made lockpicks. It’ll be fun- I haven’t built a rig since my masterpiece over here,” she nods to her computer, “and it’ll give me something to do while you’re-”  
  
Futaba stops short. She bites her lip, swallowing hard.  
  
“...while you’re… away.”  
  
Akira lets out a shuddering breath. He looks away, staring at the floor.  
  
“Listen. I, uh… I got you something. Give me your phone.”  
  
Futaba blinks, and hands it over. Akira taps at the screen for a few moments, before returning it, pulling his own phone onto his lap.  
  
“It’s an app,” Akira explains. “It’ll help us sync up our alarms and stuff. This way, neither of us will forget to take our meds. And they have this feature… look.”  
  
Akira presses his thumb into his phone. Futaba watches as his thumbprint fades in onto her screen. She glances up at him, curious. Then she presses her thumb over his, holds it for a moment, and their screens bloom into a warm, rosy red.  
  
“It’s called a ‘thumb kiss’,” Akira says, sheepish. “I know that sounds dumb. But, I don’t know. This way, you’ll always know when I’m…” Akira must realize how this sounds, because he makes a face. “...when I’m… thinking of you.”  
  
The glow of Futaba’s phone screen doesn’t quite illuminate the flush across her cheeks. She takes a shuddering breath, and gives Akira a playful shove.  
  
“Wow, shitlord,” she grins, unable to fully mask the flutter in her chest. “Since when were you such a sap?”  
  
“Be quiet,” Akira rolls his eyes, shoving her back.  
  
The playful mood flickers, an ember of warmth between them, until the darkness of Futaba’s room closes in around them, and the silence becomes smothering.  
  
A tremor shivers through Futaba’s petite form. Akira shudders, and holds her closer.  
  
“C-Come on, Taba,” he says, wearing a smile he doesn’t quite feel. “Don’t cry. If you cry, then I’ll…”  
  
“I’m not crying,” Futaba snaps, stubborn.  
  
“Yeah. Right.” Akira sniffs, dabbing at his eyes. He looks around, trying to change the subject. He taps at the headphones around Futaba’s neck. “What are you listening to?”  
  
“Huh?” Futaba glances down, and realizes that her music’s still running- has been running, ever since she’d resigned herself to her room in a depressive fog and couldn’t be bothered to turn it off. She reaches up to twist the headphones around into speaker mode.  
  
Her fingers brush against Akira’s for a second, and she gasps. She meets his eyes, and clicks the speakers on.

 _Should’ve stayed… were there signs I ignored?  
_ _Can I help you not to hurt anymore?_

Futaba chokes back a sob. Akira grunts as Futaba collides with his chest.   
  
“Don’t go…” Futaba pleads into his chest, smearing tears into his shirt.  
  
“I’m here, Taba,” Akira gasps, smoothing her hair against her scalp. “I’m right here…”

 _We saw brilliance, when the world was asleep_  
_There are things that we can have, but can’t keep…_ __  
__  
_If they say_ __  
_Who cares if one more light goes out?_ __  
_In this sky of a million stars_ __  
_It flickers, flickers_ __  
__  
_Who cares when someone’s time runs out_ __  
_If a moment is all we are_ __  
_Or quicker, quicker_ __  
__  
_Who cares if one more light goes out?_  
_Well, I do…_

“I love you, bug,” Akira murmurs into Futaba’s throat. “Take care of Dad for me.”  
  
“I will,” Futaba whispers. “...Akira… I…”  
  
They part for just a moment, Akira reaching up and brushing tears from Futaba’s cheek with the pad of his thumb. Futaba shudders.  
  
“I love you,” she breathes, and the truth of it burns a hole in her chest.  
  
“I know,” Akira says through his tears, not truly knowing at all. “And I know this… this isn’t what you want. But I’ll be back, Taba. I promise. I’ll be back for Golden Week, and somehow, after graduation… I’ll be back for good. Just wait for me. Wait for me, okay?”  
  
_You don’t even know_ ** _what_** _I want_ , Futaba wants to say, but Akira pulls her into her arms with a sob. He holds her, and she holds him. In that starless night, she can find no more words.  
  
But she has him. And she’ll wait for him, until she finds the words to say.

 _The reminders pull the floor from your feet_  
_In the kitchen, one more chair than you need_ __  
__  
_And you’re angry, and you should be, it’s not fair_ __  
_Just ‘cause you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t there_ __  
__  
_If they say_ __  
_Who cares if one more light goes out_ __  
_In this sky of a million stars?_ __  
_It flickers, flickers…_ __  
__  
_Who cares when someone’s time runs out_ __  
_If a moment is all we are?_ __  
_Or quicker, quicker_ __  
__  
_Who cares if one more light goes out?_ __  
_Well, I do._  
  
_I do._  
  
~*~

**Author's Note:**

> That's Linkin Park's "One More Light", for those curious. Thanks for reading! ^^


End file.
